Turner makes final offer to teachers

BELOIT TOWNSHIP  The Turner School District said it has made its final offer and the Turner Education Association needs to wrap up contract talks by Jan. 15.

The teachers will take a break from negotiations until January, spokeswoman Shelly Crull-Henke said. The two sides have been making steady offers since August.

Crull-Henke said the teachers want to avoid arbitration.

The deadline is necessary if the district is going to find good candidates to replace retiring teachers, district Administrator Dennis McCarthy said.

The offers on the table:

-- The district is offering a 4.39 percent total package increase in the 2007-08 school year and a 4.2 percent increase in the 2008-09 year.

The district has two options for retired teachersí benefits. The first offers $11,000 per year for four years for any teacher that retires at the end of this school year. Teachers can earn two extra years by buying back sick time.

A teacher who retires at the end of the next school year would get an $8,000 stipend for four years plus the optional two.

The second option offers an $8,500 annual stipend with no retirement deadline. That is $2,000 more per year than the districtís current benefit package.

-- The teachers are offering a 2.2 percent salary increase both school years.